The life of a mom in rural America striving to live a Christian life, be a help meet to my husband, homeschool 2 of my 4 children (7 and 10), manage a yarn/spinning shop on ETSY, and living very simply and frugally! Join us in our adventure! Visit my ETSY shop at www.etsy.com/shop/simplyhandspunyarn

Follow by Email

Thursday, September 26, 2013

I cannot stress enough how much I love the Fall!! Especially for one suffering from hot flashes, the cool, crisp air is a blessing from my precious Lord! On that note, I am enjoying a cuppa of my homemade pumpkin coffee. Yummy! I simply put my favorite coffee, Chock Full Of Nuts, into my brewing basket. To that I add about a teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/4 t. cloves, nutmeg, and ginger, with just a pinch of allspice. I mix that around and voila! Pumpkin Coffee! Once that is poured into my favorite mug, I will often add sweetened condensed milk. Wow! So delicious! This is to be savored sitting in a comfy chair, curled up under an afghan, with a good book in the peace and quiet. Nice!

I have been busy dyeing roving and knitting swatches of my yarns for my shop. Getting ready for the fall/winter selling season. You never know what a yarn will look like when it's knit or crocheted. Hopefully this will help.

Last evening, I discovered, what I think, is a wonderful Science website, Physics4kids . They also have Geography4kids, Biology4kids, Chemistry4kids, and a link to a really good math site - Rader's NUMBERNUT. My sweet hubby wants me to start teaching some serious science to our 4th grader, Ben. So, we are going to start Physics. Just a basic class - nothing too involved, but he wants Ben to have a general knowledge of motion, matter, speed of light, etc. I am pretty convinced , right now, that I am definitely am going to go for DVD courses in science when he gets older. I was pretty good in Biology, Earth Science and basic Physics, but to get an in depth education in Chemistry and Physics will require DVD teaching!

As far a our organic, healthy way of eating, it's coming along. The trouble is leaving home. When we go to anyone's home or church for meals, it's tough, mentally, to stay the course! However, we are doing much better than we were a year ago. Now,I am going to be forced to stick within my $60.00/week budget! I will post my menu for this coming week, along with my grocery list. Then, I'll let you know how I did staying in my budget. I love the challenge!

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

I love the fall! I mean, I really LOVE it! The coolness of it. The art of it - all the beautiful colors! The smell of it! All of it! I feel so much better inside and out in the cooler weather. Although, praise the Lord, our summer was super mild! I don't think we ever got into the 90's. Whoo Hoo!

So, we are still trying to eat healthy, although I have not abstained from sugary desserts like I had intended. I need to pray about getting control of this area. However, I am doing much better than I have been doing. Still trying to get the hang of the Trim Healthy Mama way of eating. It isn't that hard, once you get the concepts of carbs, fats and how they interact with your body.

I have not been using my Wonder Washer that much either! I need to go to my original plan of having the kids do their own laundry and then all I have left are my and my husband's clothes and towels. It does work great, though. Only 2 minutes for a large load and 30 seconds for the rinse! WOW!

I am working on my ETSY shop a lot! I have kinda slacked off a bit this summer, but our bank account is screaming - "Get back to work!". I am expanding my line of roving quite a bit. I'm also going to start on my first digital instructional video! I am excited about that. I'm going to do a basic spinning class, I think. It would be a great gift combo with a spinning wheel! We will see. Ben, my now 9 year old, has agreed to film me. We will see about that, too! LOL. I don't know if he will have a steady enough hand. Anyway, I am grateful for his willingness.

I have completed 2 baby blankets this summer. And, on the urging of my family and friends, I have added custom baby blankets/wall hangings to my shop. I am not sure if this will work, but we will see! I did enjoy creating each blanket a lot.

I have discovered, through Stacy Makes Cents, a great meal planning site. In the past, I would do a menu for the week, but I would forget where the recipes were - book or computer,; which book; which website?! This site does away with that! Your meal plan, recipes and shopping list are all in one spot! And it is super easy to import recipes as you stumble across them on the internet. Just one click! The site is Plan To Eat. Check it out! There is a 30 day free trial, then it is just $4.99/month. Well worth it, I think.

I am going to sign off and enjoy a cup of Creamy Pumpkin Pie tea before homeschool starts! This is wonderful with cream and honey! Yum!! And the aroma is fantastic! I highly recommend this organic blend by Shoshanna at the Bulk Herb Store!